Congress Passes Bill to Block NLRB’s Ambush Election Rule

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a joint resolution March 19 to block the NLRB’s ambush election rule which will take a big step toward protecting both the due process rights of employers and the privacy rights of employees. ABC is fully supportive of the resolution and has urged President Obama to sign it.

Under the ambush election rule, the amount of time between when a union files a representation petition and an election takes place will be dramatically reduced from the current average of 38 days to as few as 14 calendar days. In addition, the rule shortens the amount of time an employer is allotted to provide a list of eligible voters and adds to the amount of employee personal contact information that must be disclosed to unions. The changes are scheduled to take effect April 14, 2015.

The joint resolution was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by House Committee on Education and the Workforce Chairman John Kline (R-Minn.) and the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.).

“We are encouraged by today’s vote in the House led by Chairman Kline and urge President Obama to support this resolution, which will take a big step toward protecting both the due process rights of employers and the privacy rights of employees,” said ABC Vice President of Government Affairs Geoff Burr. “This failed policy from the NLRB is designed to suppress employers’ voices during union organizing campaigns, which is not only unfair to employers but also to employees who deserve the opportunity to hear from both sides and make a well-informed decision on whether or not to join a labor union.